Ohio State is replacing eight starters on defense for the second year in a row.
It can be safely assumed that Kenyatta Jackson Jr., Jermaine Mathews Jr. and Jaylen McClain will reprise their starting roles from last season. Devin Sanchez and Payton Pierce are poised to step into starting roles after playing regularly off the bench last year, while Ohio State could have as many as a half-dozen transfers playing major roles on its 2026 defense. But there are still plenty of questions about how the depth chart will shake out.
In Part 2 of Eleven Warriors’ initial depth chart projection for 2026, I’ve put together a three-deep look at how I forecast the depth chart stacking up at every defensive position when the season starts in September. After breaking down the potential offensive depth chart on Tuesday, the second half of our depth chart projection also looks at how the depth chart could shake out at each of the primary positions on special teams: Kicker, punter, long snapper, kickoff returner and punt returner.
Defensive End
1. Kenyatta Jackson Jr.
2. Beau Atkinson
3. Khary Wilder
Defensive End
1. Zion Grady
2. Qua Russaw
3. Epi Sitanilei
With Jackson returning from last year’s starting lineup, Ohio State has a few candidates to start opposite him in Grady, Russaw and Atkinson. I give the edge to Grady, who surpassed Atkinson on the depth chart by the end of his freshman year and flashed star potential. Russaw also has the talent to earn a big role, but that could depend on how he fits into Ohio State’s defensive scheme, as he’s more of a hybrid edge rusher/outside linebacker than a true defensive end.
Like Grady last year, Wilder has the talent and college-readiness to compete for a spot in the rotation right away and climb the depth chart quickly as a freshman, but he’ll likely start out as Ohio State’s No. 5 defensive end. Sitanilei flashed in preseason camp as a true freshman last year and could also challenge for a spot in the rotation as a redshirt freshman.
Defensive Tackle (3-Tech)
1. James Smith
2. Eddrick Houston
3. Jason Moore
Defensive Tackle (Nose)
1. John Walker
2. Will Smith Jr.
3. Emanuel Ruffin
Walker is the truest nose tackle on the roster among non-freshmen, making him the likely replacement for Kayden McDonald as Ohio State’s starting NT. Smith will also factor into the rotation at nose tackle after backing up McDonald last season, while Ruffin is the top candidate to earn immediate playing time among this year’s freshman defensive tackles.
Smith and Houston figure to rotate at 3-technique, much like Tywone Malone Jr. and Houston did last year. Either one of them could win the starting job, but Smith – who started at Alabama last year – gets the nod after transferring to Ohio State as the top-ranked interior defensive lineman to enter the portal this offseason.
Moore will also look to earn more playing time after playing only sparingly in his first three seasons at Ohio State, but he still projects as the Buckeyes’ No. 5 defensive tackle, like he was last season.
Will Linebacker
1. Christian Alliegro
2. Riley Pettijohn
3. TJ Alford
Mike Linebacker
1. Payton Pierce
2. Cincere Johnson
3. Eli Lee
Pierce is in line to take over as Ohio State’s starting Mike linebacker after playing as the Buckeyes’ No. 3 linebacker last season, just as Arvell Reese did a year ago and Cody Simon did two years ago.
Pettijohn could prove too talented to keep out of the starting lineup after showing plenty of playmaking skill in limited action last year, but he projects right now as Ohio State’s No. 3 linebacker behind Pierce and Alliegro, who’s already proven he can be a high-level Big Ten starter at Wisconsin.
Johnson, the top-ranked linebacker in the 2026 recruiting class, figures to earn a spot in the two-deep right away as Ohio State’s likely starting middle linebacker of the future. Some combination of Alford, Lee and Garrett Stover will round out the linebacker three-deep; Alford flashed the most of that group in limited action last year, while Lee is the truest Mike linebacker of that group.
Cornerback
1. Jermaine Mathews Jr.
2. Jordan Thomas
3. Dominick Kelly
Cornerback
1. Devin Sanchez
2. Cam Calhoun
3. Jordyn Woods
Nickel
1. Earl Little Jr.
2. Jay Timmons
3. Miles Lockhart
Sanchez moves into the starting lineup opposite Mathews after being the first cornerback off the bench last year as a true freshman. Calhoun – a former starter at Utah who transferred to Ohio State after a one-year stint at Alabama – figures to be the first cornerback off the bench this year.
Little primarily played free safety at Florida State but is expected to play nickel at Ohio State. Timmons, a five-star freshman, could play either inside or outside long-term but has his best shot at immediate playing time at nickel, where he could also be a candidate to be the sixth defensive back in dime packages.
Fellow true freshman Thomas could also push for playing time at cornerback along with Kelly, a Georgia transfer. Woods and Lockhart round out the roster of scholarship cornerbacks, though former walk-on Brenton “Inky” Jones also has experience at the position.
Free Safety
1. Terry Moore
2. Leroy Roker III
3. Khmari Bing
Strong Safety
1. Jaylen McClain
2. Blaine Bradford
3. Simeon Caldwell
Moore, who was one of college football’s best free safeties in 2024 before missing the 2025 season with a torn ACL, will slot in as Ohio State’s new free safety provided he returns to his pre-injury form this offseason. The Duke transfer will join returning starter McClain as Ohio State’s two primary safeties.
Roker projects as Ohio State’s top safety off the bench, with Little also having the versatility to move to either free or strong safety as needed.
Bradford, the highest-ranked safety in Ohio State’s 2026 freshman class, is a strong candidate to round out the two-deep as McClain’s likely eventual successor at strong safety. Bing and Caldwell are the top candidates to round out the three-deep as freshmen, though other options include Jones, walk-on Ryan Rudzinski, redshirt freshman Deshawn Stewart and fellow true freshman Kaden Gebhardt.
Kicker
1. Connor Hawkins
2. Cooper Peterson
3. Marcello Diomede
Hawkins was brought in to be Ohio State’s starting kicker after making 18 of 22 field goals, including three of four from 50-plus yards, at Baylor last season. Peterson, an incoming freshman walk-on, and Diomede, a walk-on transfer from Notre Dame, will compete to be the No. 2 kicker in a room that’s completely turned over from last year.
Punter
1. Joe McGuire
2. Brady Young
McGuire returns for his third season as Ohio State’s starting punter. The Buckeyes added depth with Young, a walk-on transfer from Houston Christian, but Ryan Day indicated on his radio show last month that McGuire would remain the Buckeyes’ top punter. Ohio State currently has only two known punters on its 2026 roster.
Long Snapper
1. Dalton Riggs
2. Brody Jenkins
3. Landon Beal
Like at kicker, Ohio State has a brand new roster of three players at long snapper. Riggs, the starting long snapper at UCF last season, was brought in to be Ohio State’s new starter. Jenkins, a freshman walk-on ranked as one of the top long snappers in the 2026 recruiting class, likely projects as the backup long snapper. Beal, a walk-on transfer from Maine, provides additional depth.
Kick Returner
1. Legend Bey
2. Kyle Parker
3. Anthony “Turbo” Rogers
Ohio State has typically leaned on veterans and prioritized ball security on kickoff returns in recent years, but new special teams coordinator Robby Discher could look to bring a more explosive approach to the return game. And returning kickoffs might be an ideal early role for Bey, who could need time to adjust to playing running back after playing quarterback in high school but is a “dynamite” athlete – in the words of Day – who would give Ohio State a true big-play threat on special teams.
Parker, who returned two kickoffs last season at LSU, and Rogers also fit the bill of fast, shifty athletes who can make defenders miss and be dynamic weapons in the return game, potentially opening up bigger roles for them than they might have on offense.
Punt Returner
1. Brandon Inniss
2. Phillip Bell
3. Devin McCuin
Inniss will likely continue as Ohio State’s top returner after holding that role for the past two seasons. Bell could be another option to return punts as a redshirt freshman after getting one in-game rep at punt returner last season vs. Minnesota. McCuin’s only punt returns at UTSA were fair catches, but his speed and sure-handedness make him another potential candidate.
